Juvenile conversion unit for basketball backboards and their hoops



L. F. KILLICK JUVENILE CONVERSION UNIT FOR BASKETBALL BACKBOARDS AND THEIR HOOPS 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. LAW/@HCE F HILMGM GNT April 26, 1955 Filed May l, 1951 APlll` 25, 1955 L. F. KlLLlcK 2,707,104

JUVENILE CONVERSION UNIT EOR BASKETBALL BAOKBOAROS AND THEIR Hoops Filed lay l. 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet i2 :f1 16 INVENTOR.

l LENRENCEEHILUGM Y By/fmw//wy HGEN T United States Patent O JUVENILE CONVERSION UNIT FOR BASKETBALL BACKBOARDS AND THEIR HOOPS Lawrence F. Killick, Burlington, Vt.

Application May 1, 1951, Serial No. 223,983

9 Claims. (Cl. 273-1.5)

This invention relates generally to basketball apparatus and more particularly to a device for quickly con verting standard-sized basketball hoops and their Supporting back boards to a size suitable for use by grade school children.

Juvenile size sports equipment of most all types is well known in the art and has been highly instrumental in the early development of playing skills among the youngsters. It is axiomatic among those interested in developing young athletes that the earlier they start playing a particular sport, the more adept they become at it. As a result, the equipment and playing elds or courts in many sports have been scaled down to t the maturity of youngsters who are physically unable to successfully handle the regulation size.

However, there are many practical difculties involved in the carrying forward of such juvenile athletic programs by interested institutions or organizations. Among these difficulties are a lack of space for suitable additional playing areas, the diiculty and usual impracticality of temporarily converting existing playing areas to juvenile size; the problem of removing and storing such conversion means if existent; a lack of suitable means for readily converting equipment to juvenile size and back again; and the high cost of additional juvenile sports equipment or of the apparatus for converting existing equipment.

Accordingly, the chief object of the present invention is to provide a device which will obviate the abovementioned dii'lculties as to basketball.

Another important object of the invention is to provide a device for converting regulation basketball courts and equipment to juvenile size which may be readily and detachably mounted on a regulation basketball hoop so as to enable juveniles to develop playing skill in basketball which will be useful when they reach mature heights.

A still further important object is to provide a strong lightweight hoop and back board attachment for regulation basketball hoops which will be vertically adjustable, require small storage space, and be economical to manufacture.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent during the course of the following de scription.

In the drawings I have shown one embodiment of the invention. In this showing:

Figure l is a side elevational view of the device comprising the present invention mounted in operative position upon a regulation basketball hoop;

Figure 2 is a top plan view thereof;

Figure 3 is a front elevational view thereof;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary perspective view to an enlarged scale showing the means by which the device is supported from a hoop;

Figure 5 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view thereof taken on the line 5-5 of Figure 2;

Figure 6 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view thereof taken on the line 6--6 of Figure 2; and

Figure 7 is a central vertical sectional view of the end of one of the bracing bars.

Referring to the drawings, numeral 10 indicates the hoop and back board attachment as a whole which is shown supported by a regulation hoop H and braced against its back board B. The attachment comprises a hoop 12 xed in horizontal position to the lower central surface of a supporting rectangular back board 2,707,104 Patented Apr. 26, 1955 14, both of reduced dimensions with respect to the hoop H and the back board B as will be further described.

A pair of spaced, vertically disposed channel members 16 are fixed to the rear surface of the back board 14 and extend to its upper and lower edges with the channels open toward each other. The web of each channel is provided with apertures 17 spaced at 3 inch intervals for a purpose which will become apparent.

A pair of spaced triangular brackets indicated as a whole as 18 are supported on the regulation basketball hoop H by means of hook bolts 19 having thumb nuts 20 (Figure 6). The brackets 18 comprise horizontal angle supports 22 Welded or otherwise secured at one end to inclined angle braces 24 and both supports and braces are bolted at their other ends to the upper and lower ends respectively of vertically disposed track angles 25. The tracks 25 are rigidly connected at their upper ends by a bar 26, to thus form a rigid U shaped assembly.

It will be readily apparent that the tracks 25 of the brackets 18 are slidably received in the channels 16 of the back board 14 for vertical adjustment of the latter with respect to the hook H. A pair of apertures 26 are formed in the tracks Z5 which may be held in adjusted vertical position in the channels by alignment of the apertures with the corresponding apertures 17 and the insertion of a locking pin or bolt 27. A strong, rigid though readily adjustable support for the back board 14 is thus provided by the connected brackets 18 which are clamped to and supported by the hook H.

In order that the back board 14 may be strongly braced during play when in operative position, a pair of arms 30 are pivotally connected to the rear face thereof adjacent the side edges and slightly above the midpoint for engagement with the back board B. As seen in Figure 7, the arms 30 are provided with telescopic members 31 at their outer ends. A headed screw 32 movable in the slot 33 limits the movement of the member which is urged outwardly by the strong cornpression spring 34. The end of the member 31 may be provided with a friction covering or pad 35 of rubber, etc., and the two back boards are thus held in parallelism without damage to the backlboard B.

The manner in which the basketball hoop attachment 10 can be readily attached to or detached from the regulation basketball hoop H is believed to be readily apparent. A bracket 18 is bolted top and bottom to one of the tracks 25 and then the bracket is placed over an edge of and loosely clamped to the regulation hoop H by the thumb nuts 20. The other bracket is then placed over the opposite edge and loosely clamped to the hoop H and bolted to the other track 25. Both brackets are adjusted on the hoop H so that the track-connecting bar 26 is parallel to the back board B whereupon the four thumb nuts 20 are completely tightened.

The channels 16 of the back board 14 are now aligned with the bottom ends of the tracks 25 and slid upwardly thereover until the desired vertical position is reached whereupon a pin is inserted in the aligned apertures 17 and 26. The arms 30 are now swung so that their ends are resiliently urged against the board B. When vertical adjustment of the back board 14 with respect to the back board B is infrequent, it may be desirable to bolt the tracks and channels together as shown at 27 rather than to use a locking pin.

As is well known, the dimensions of the regulation back board B are 4 feet by 6 feet with the regulation hoop H which is 18 inches in diameter positioned l0 feet above the playing door. The attachment 10 comprising the present invention is preferably formed by strong light weight metal such as aluminum although, of course, other materials may be used. The dimensions of the back board 14 are 21/2 feet by 4 feet with the hoop 12 being l5 inches in diameter, these dimensions being found suitable after exhaustive tests.

Obviously, the l0 foot height of the regulation hook H is much too great for juveniles and it will be noted that the hoop 12 may be positioned at any desired height between 8 and 9 feet by proper alignment of the apertures 26 and 17, the latter being vertically spaced at 3 inch intervals. Thus small grade school children using the smaller back board 14 and hoop 12 at a height of 8 feet may readily develop a playing skill in basketball.

This is ensured by the use of a basketball having a circumference of 26 inches instead of the regulation 30 inches which, due to the decreased weight and size, will enable the children to throw a two hand set with wrists and arm coordination rather than with body strain as formerly. Thus the present invention eliminates a ball that is too large and heavy, a hoop that is too high and large and provides a proper sized basket hoop which is approximately 2 feet closer to the foul line due to its projection forwardly from the hoop H. It will be appreciated that the ability to physically handle the equipment is more important to the development of playing skill than is a mere reduction in the size of the playing field or surface.

The basketball hoop attachment comprising the present invention may readily be attached to a regulation hoop H as described and readily removed and stored fiat in a knock down condition if desired. The track assembly, the two brackets, the hoop 12 when detached from the back board 14 and the telescopic bracing arms will all lie flat thereon to also facilitate shipping. Thus the present invention, when supported from the hoop of a regulation back board and below and in front of the same, will quickly convert a regulation basketball court or playing area and its equipment to juvenile use and economically solves an old problem.

It is to be understood that the form of my invention herewith shown and described is to be taken as a preferred example of the same and that various changes in the shape, size and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departure from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the subjoined claims.

I claim:

1. A device for converting regulation basketball courts and hoop and backboard equipment in operative position to juvenile use comprising an auxiliary backboard having a hoop mounted thereon, both being of reduced dimensions as compared to said regulation equipment, and means on said auxiliary board for supporting it in operative position from, below and forwardly of a regulation hoop, said means comprising a channel fixed to said auxiliary board, a bracket adapted to be clamped to said regulation hoop, and a track connecting said bracket and said channel.

2.v A device for converting regulation basketball courts and hoop and backboard equipment in operative position to juvenile use comprising an auxiliary backboard having a hoop mounted thereon, both being of reduced dimensions as compared to said regulation equipment, and means on said auxiliary board for supporting it in operative position from, below and forwardly of a regulation hoop, said means comprising a channel fixed to said auxiliary board, a bracket adapted to be clamped to said regulation hoop and a track connecting said bracket and said channel, said track being movable with respect to said channel to vary the height of said auxiliary board and hoop.

3. A device for converting regulation basketball courts and hoop and backboard equipment in operative position to juvenile use comprising an auxiliary backboard having a hoop mounted thereon, both being of reduced dimensions as compared to said regulation equipment, and means on said auxiliary board for Supporting it in operative position from, below and forwardly of a regulation hoop, and bracing it against the backboard supporting said regulation hoop, said means comprising a channel fixed to said auxiliary board, a bracket adapted to be clamped to said regulation hoop,

a track connecting said bracket and said channel, and an arm pivoted to said auxiliary board and adapted to engage said regulation board to brace the former.

4. A device for converting regulation basketball courts and hoop and backboard equipment in operative position to juvenile use comprising an auxiliary backboard having a hoop mounted thereon, both being of reduced dimensions as compared to said regulation equipment, and means on said auxiliary board for supporting it in operative position from, below and forwardly of a regulation hoop, and bracing it against the backboard supporting said regulation hoop, said means comprising a channel fixed to said auxiliary board, a bracket adapted to be clamped to said regulation hoop, a track connecting said bracket and said channel, and an arm pivoted to said auxiliary board and adapted to engage said regulation board to brace the former, said arm being telescopic and including resilient means urging it against said regulation board.

device for converting regulation basketball courts and hoop and backboard equipment in operative position to juvenile use comprising an auxiliary backboard having a hoop mounted thereon, both being of reduced dimensions as compared to said regulation equipment, a pair of spaced channels fixed to said auxiliary backboard, a pair of tracks fixed to said channels, and bracket means fixed to said tracks and adapted to be clamped to regulation basketball hoops to support the device in operative position thereon and forwardly and below thereof.

6. A device for converting regulation basketball courts and hoop and backboard equipment in operative position to juvenile use comprising an auxiliary backboard having a hoop mounted thereon, both being of reduced dimensions as compared to said regulation equipment, a pair of spaced channels fixed to said auxiliary backboard, a pair of tracks slidable in and adapted to be connected to said channels, and bracket means fixed to said tracks and adapted to be clamped to regulation basketball hoops to support the device in operative position thereon and forwardly and below thereof, said tracks being movable with respect to said channels to vary the height of said auxiliary backboard and hoop.

7. The combination with a regulation basketball backboard and hoop mounted in operative position, of a detachable auxiliary backboard and hoop of reduced dimensions as compared to said regulation equipment, and means mounted on said auxiliary board supporting it in operative position on said regulation hoop and below and forwardly thereof.

8. The combination with a regulation basketball backboard and hoop mounted in operative position, of a detachable auxiliary backboard and hoop of reduced dimensions as compared to said regulation equipment, and means mounted on said auxiliary board supporting it in operative position on said regulation hoop and below and forwardly thereof, and bracing it against said regulation backboard.

9. The combination with a regulation basketball backboard including a hoop mounted in operative position for play, of a detachable auxiliary backboard and hoop of reduced dimensions as compared to said regulation equipment rigidly mounted thereon and respectively forwardly and downwardly thereof in operative position for play by juveniles.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,878,864 Lane et al. Sept. 20, 1932 1,904,836 Peoples Apr. 8, 1933 2,039,794 Hayden May 5, 1936 2,517,463 Cobb Aug. 1, 1950 

